TPT May 2023

INDUSTRY

Measuring technology specialist Sikora celebrates its 50 th anniversary

On 1 November, 1973, with the foundation of Harald Sikora’s one-man business, the company’s success story began, driven by a multitude of technological advances. An inductive measuring method for power cables that measures the position of the cable, the so-called sag, made the company well-known in the high-voltage cable industry. Laser technology, which uses line sensors to enable non-contact diameter measurement

SIKORA is looking back on its proud company history as it celebrates its 50 th anniversary this year. Since 1973, the company has been developing and producing innovative measuring and control technology to increase its customers’ productivity. Good ideas, and a pioneering approach, have been the historical focus of the company. In 1972, Harald Sikora, a 36-year-old living in Bremen, Germany, invented a non-contact measuring device for the continuous measurement of cable insulation, wall thickness and concentricity during manufacturing. This technology, that later established itself as a global standard, became the basis for a start-up. From the very beginning, the pursuit of excellence was part of the young electrical engineer’s guiding principle: “There is nothing that cannot be done better. And that works best with clever ideas, passion and an ear for the customer.” Sikora launched a measuring device for the measurement of insulation, wall thickness and concentricity during cable production, called the Wandexe, in the 1970s

The modern company headquarters of Sikora AG in Bremen, Germany

The first Sikora company building

of wires and cables in the production process, also conquered the market. The company grew and, in 1979, it changed its name to Sikora Industrieelektronik GmbH. In the 1990s, Sikora added many more products to its portfolio. Among them were X-ray devices for measuring the wall thickness of three-layer medium, high and extra-high voltage cables during the cable production. These devices display the measuring results in fractions of a second and enable the operator to immediately make any needed adjustments. Even today, X-ray measuring devices from

Sikora are part of the industry standard for CV lines. Worldwide, approximately 1,800 devices are installed and ensure reliable quality control. Sikora meets the global demand for measuring devices from 1991 on and has established a worldwide sales network, with the first representative offices in the USA and China. The success of the X-ray measuring system for CV lines was the basis for the development of an advanced, new series of X-ray measuring devices.

They were designed for the measurement of wall thicknesses in core and sheathing lines, which had not previously been possible.

Since the 2000s, Sikora has also been active in other industries with the X-RAY 6000 Pro X-ray measuring system in tube, pipe and hose production

6

www.read-tpt.com

MAY 2023